Small and Safe
by The innocent and the young
Summary: 'It suddenly hit him, as he looked at her huddled in on herself, thin arms wrapped around her body, dirt covering the once pretty skin, that she was just a 9 year old' One-shot. Arya/Gendry


_onabitofaArya/Gendryroleitwouldseem. So this is a one-shot that's been on my mind for a while. Reviews are welcome!_

_ ALL RIGHT BELONG TO THE RIGHTFUL PERSON_

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A soft patter of rain was falling down around them, soaking through their never drying clothes. She was curled up on the muddy floor, her eyes closed tight as she counted down in her till they started. It was the same every night, the men, no their captors would go round and drag the girls from the ground and take them away, only to throw them back later. She got to 20 before she shots and screams of the women and girls surrounded her. _As long as I stay quiet, maybe they won't see me. Small and quite. Small and quite_. All around the men were dragging the women, girls from the floor, some laughing while they screamed for pottery, for it to stop. Arya drew herself closer, hugging her knees to her chest, trying to make herself as small as possible and blend in with the muddy ground. Small and quite. Small and quite.

He looked over at her small frame, still visible in the dark light. They'd started picking girls, and so far none of them had noticed her, but that didn't make him any less scared. _I won't let them touch her. Not her._ He moved slowly around the bodies pretending to be asleep, trying to stay quiet and not draw any attention to myself.

"Arya..."he whispered her name quietly, just loud enough for her to hear.

She felt the hand on her shoulder, flinching at the sudden pressure before tensing up, trying to block it out.

"It's just me." Gendry whispered quietly again, feeling as she slowly relaxed her body. She knew his voice, would know it anywhere.

"Are you okay?"

She didn't know how to respond, was she okay? With so much having happened, it was the last thing on her mind for these men to want to _touch_ her. The thought never really came to her mind.

"I... I...I don't know." She muttered honestly still facing away from him, her arms wrapped around her body, trying to keep some warmth in her body.

Taking a quick look around to check no one was looking their way, Gendry moved himself over her so she was facing him and not her back. It suddenly hit him, as he looked at her huddled in on herself, thin arms wrapped around her body, dirt covering the once pretty skin, that she was just a 9 year old. So young to have faced so much, _too _much. He was suddenly overwhelmed with the need to protect her, to make sure nothing hurt her while he could stop it.

"Come here." He said quietly as he lowered his head near hers.

She looked at him oddly _what does he mean?_ With a sigh Gendry pulled her closer to him like she weighed nothing, until she was face to face with his chest. The starchy fabric of his clothes made her nose tickle slightly as she wriggled around trying to look at him.

"What are you _doing_?" she hissed at him even though part of her appreciated the sudden warmth his body brought.

"Make sure no one sees you." He said and as he said it the screaming started. The girls shouting out in pain and protest, crying for someone to save them, praying to their gods. But if anyone heard they did nothing. The men laughed.

Their sounds hit her and made her cringe, wanting nothing more than to run away and hide from the awful sounds they made. Screaming and begging. As if by habit she buried her face in Gendry's chest, closing her eyes tight and trying to block out the sounds.

"Make it stop. Please...please..." She wasn't afraid of a man grown coming at her with a long sword or strangers shouting or beating her bloody, this was a different fear. It was something she couldn't control. If they got their hands on her she'd have no escape, no way to run away, and that was something she'd never faced before. And it scared her.

"Just keep your eyes closed, they can't touch you. I won't let them touch you. It's okay. You're safe." He muttered the words to the top of her head, trying his best to block her ears from the sounds, but even he couldn't do everything. _She's just so small. Small and quite, doesn't make a sound even now. _

So that was how they spent the night, her clinging onto him for safety while the screams and begging went on around them, him holding her close, trying to block everything out. And when the sun came up and morning made its self known, they both got up and didn't acknowledge the night, didn't say how afraid she was and how afraid he was for her.


End file.
